The crowd also directed their ire towards manager Rafael Benitez with chants for former manager Roberto Di Matteo again ringing around Stamford Bridge.

The Spaniard eventually brought on Ba for Torres and when the £50 million man was finally withdrawn after 81 minutes, the boos were not all-encompassing, but very audible

The Senegal international made an immediate impact on the game, twice going close with headers, before being booked for diving after tangling with goalkeeper Gerhard Tremmel and then having a late goal disallowed for offside.

When Danny Graham added insult to injury late on by adding a second goal, the atmosphere turned downright poisonous, with Benitez and Torres the main targets of ire.